There are mountains to hike, roads to ride and bodies of water to swim in. Let's Go!

Monday, October 13, 2008

Benefits of Not Riding

While I don't recommend deliberately taking time off from cycling, there are times when it just happens. Injuries and mountain pursuits are usually my excuses. Here is a list of benefits that comes along with hanging up the bike for more than a couple of weeks:

Less Laundry: if you ride every day, that's 6 to 7 pairs of shorts and a couple of jerseys to add to the laundry bin each week and, if you're like me and take care of your shorts and synthetic (and wool) clothing, that's a lot of space on the drying rack. Those shorts can really take up a lot of space and increase the overall time the clothes take to dry.

Less time spent on wardrobe: When I ride to work, I have to dress first for my commute, then fold up the clothes I will change into at work. When I get to work, I change my clothes and the process gets reversed at the end of the day. That's a lot of decision-making on behalf of dressing for the weather, looking decent, etc. Plus, it takes up valuable time not only making those decisions but doing the actual clothing changes. My employer loses productive work time in the morning and afternoon when I am in the bathroom, changing clothes.

Less chance of getting chain goop on the carpet: I am pretty careful with my bikes and I keep my chain cleaned and lubed pretty regularly but chain gunk is sneaky. It drops on the floor of my storage area, migrates to my shoes (even though I leave the bike shoes in the bike room) and track onto the carpet. I have either learned to live with small black spots on the carpet or I have, in times of desperation, called in the experts to use their (hopefully) non-toxic cleaner on my off-white livingroom or bedroom floor. Don't ask me how it gets into the bedroom- I love my bikes, but...